New trains to come on track by the end of year

Ian Hyde, Northern’s Head of New Trains, said: “It made its first move under its own power on March 7. We’ve worked for so long on the design and construction of the new trains that it’s a real thrill to see one on the move for the first time, even if only for a few metres.”

The train is scheduled to arrive at the test track by the end of this week where it will undergo commissioning work on-site. Then, towards the end of March, full track testing will begin.

The trains, which are part of the Great North Rail Project, will undergo further track testing in the UK over the summer in readiness for passenger use in December.

Steve Timothy, from rolling stock operator Eversholt Rail, said the news represented “another major milestone” towards the trains’ introduction into passenger service. The first of 98 new electric and diesel trains is undergoing testing before arriving on the region’s rail routes in December this year